NBL: Rising US star LaMelo Ball reportedly keen to buy struggling Illawarra Hawks
After taking back the licence of struggling Illawarra Hawks on Friday night, the NBL want to run their eye over rising star LaMelo Ball’s bid before giving it the green light.
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LaMelo Ball’s bid to co-own the Illawarra Hawks is far from certain, with NBL officials weighing up whether the NBA draft bound star is the right suitor for the embattled franchise moving forward.
News Corp Australia can reveal that NBL officials aren’t convinced with Ball’s contribution in a consortium bid alongside former Wollongong Wolves football backer Tory Lavelle.
The potential No.1 draft pick was reportedly set to become the head of a new ownership group at Illawarra, but it’s understood he is offering a smaller role and contribution.
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As a result, the NBL want to run their eye over Ball’s bid before giving it the green light.
The league will start negotiations with LaMelo’s team next week.
It comes as the NBL took back the licence of the Illawarra Hawks on Friday night.
The club has been placed into voluntary administration.
Despite concerns over Ball’s role in an ownership bid, the league sees significant benefit in the gifted guard joining forces with the Hawks given his links to the NBA.
Ball linking with the NBL would also put the Australian league on the map, opening the door for professional players to choose Down Under as a career path.
For now, though, LaMelo’s deal to co-own Illawarra isn’t over the line despite his manager’s claims on Friday.
“We own the team,” Jermaine Jackson said. “It’s a done deal.”
Ball came to Australia last August and the point guard averaged 17.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 12 games with the Hawks before a foot injury ended his season.
The 2019 NBL Rookie of the Year wanted to make Australia part of his long-term plans after enjoying his stay in Wollongong.
So when Hawks owners Simon and Wendy Stratford posted a message saying they needed more corporate and public support, 18-year-old Ball saw a perfect opportunity.
“Melo loves the Illawarra fans,” Jackson, a former NBA and European player, told ESPN.
“He loves that community. They opened their arms to him. They made us feel like we’re at home.
“When we started hearing about the issues they were going through, we talked about it and decided, ‘Let’s own the team.’”
Ball is working out with brothers Lonzo and LiAngelo in suburban Los Angeles ahead of the 2020 NBA draft, where he can expect to be picked in the top five or six players.
An exact date for the draft is uncertain though in the wake of the NBA shutdown due to the coronavirus outbreak.
“He’s going to be locked into his NBA career, but we are going to hire the right people to oversee everything,” Jackson said.
“He wants to create the best basketball program possible for that community.”
The news would certainly be welcomed by NBL owner Larry Kestelman who earlier this week confirmed Ball and his agent had expressed a desire to own a slice of the Hawks during their time in Australia last season.
Ball’s interest in the Hawks comes as the franchise was forced to stand down all staff and coaches due to the financial impact of the coronavirus.
This had placed a cloud over Stratford’s future as Illawarra owner, with numerous parties expressing interest in the Wollongong based club.
Kestelman had said the NBL would be prepared to take over the Hawks for the foreseeable future until a suitable owner was sourced.
“He (LaMelo) definitely expressed an interest with his manager,” Kestelman said.
“The world is in a different place now (following the coronavirus), so I don’t know if that is the case currently as I haven’t spoken to them about it.
“But they have (previously) expressed an interest.
“If Simon (Stratford) was not successful and the club came back to us, we would run a process to try and find the right owner.
“We are happy to stand behind these clubs, but our intent is not to own these clubs long-term.
“At the moment Simon is still the owner of the club, so he deserves our respect and a lot of this rests on him.
“But if and when he sells the club, then we are happy to support it until we find the right owner.”
Ball’s interest in ownership follows a long list of former and current NBA players involved financially in the NBL, including Dante Exum, Andrew Bogut and Zach Randolph.
Kestelman had declared the NBL won’t let Illawarra fold, regardless of their financial struggles.
Instead he had urged the Hawks to continue to expand their brand into Canberra and other parts of NSW.
“I have been a strong advocate that the Hawks need to become a club for all of regional NSW and the ACT,” he said.
“I think they need to continue playing a big part of their games in Wollongong.
“That is where their history lies as their primary home, but I think they should spread their wings much further.
“They really need to do a better job at being for all of that area.
“I think it is a team that can play a number of games in Canberra, in a community that would love to see more games.
“I think we need to come up with a formula to see how that works to make the club sustainable.
“I said that three years ago, and I say that today.”